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A GLOBAL
study released recently by computer manufacturer IBM
showed that “companies believe that when they are more
open with stakeholders and place social responsibility
at the core of their business strategy, they will be
more competitive, attract and retain the best talent and
gain access to new business opportunities.”
In a
statement, IBM said “many companies now see corporate
social responsibility as a growth opportunity rather
than just a regulatory compliance or philanthropic
effort, with 68 percent of those surveyed focused on
generating revenue through CSR [corporate social
responsibility] activities. In addition, 54 percent
believe CSR initiatives contribute to giving their
corporations a competitive advantage.”
These
beliefs are driven by the “rising influence of
customers” who are now able to research and share
information on the Internet and “have become highly
sensitized to a broad range of issues—everything from
concerns about climate change to product-safety issues,
to labor practices, to corporate financial
accountability, to questions about whether corporations
are returning enough of their profits to the community,”
the study indicates.
“While
customers are becoming the chief driver of this
increased focus on CSR, 76 percent of businesses
surveyed admit they don’t truly understand their
customers’ CSR concerns,” IBM said in its statement. “In
fact, even businesses that feel they are knowledgeable
and prepared to deal with CSR issues may not be. Nearly
two-thirds of companies surveyed believe they have
sufficient information about the sources behind their
products and services to satisfy customer concerns, but
half of those admit they don’t understand their
customers CSR expectations well.”
Fueling
customer focus on CSR, “three-quarters of businesses
report that the number of advocacy groups collecting and
reporting information on them has increased in the last
three years, as has the amount of information businesses
are providing about the sourcing, composition and impact
of their products, services and operations,” the study
showed.
“The
more information stakeholders get, the more they want to
know. This increased visibility of corporate behavior is
driving consumers’ decisions on what to buy and who to
buy from, who to work for, who to partner with, where to
invest, “IBM Philippines president and country general
manager James Velasquez said.
Velasquez added that “it’s not only critical for
businesses to keep up with the emerging demands of their
stakeholders, but to build CSR into the core of their
business strategy.” He also said “CSR is not viewed as a
discretionary cost, but an investment that will bring
financial returns. And since customers are changing
buying behavior as a result of CSR, the financial impact
can be dramatic. Companies in the Philippines are
starting to realize this, and have actually led to more
visible local CSR projects as of late.”
The
survey results are part of a new report released
Wednesday by IBM Institute for Business Value, titled,
“Attaining Sustainable Growth Through Corporate Social
Responsibility.”
The full
study, available at
www.ibm.com/gbs/csrstudy, evaluates how well
companies understand and manage CSR expectations and
outlines steps along the “value curve” companies can
follow to strategically align their CSR objectives to
their core business strategy. According to the report,
maximum benefit from the CSR opportunity “takes place
when all activities on the value curve—legal and
compliance, strategic philanthropy, values-based
self-regulation, efficiency and growth—become integrated
into a cohesive strategy with leadership driven as much
from employees, customers and business partners as from
the CEO and senior executives.” |
